Senator Bill Cassidy Accuses HHS Secretary RFK Jr. of Lying About Vaccine-Autism Commitments, Warns of Erosion in Public Health Trust

Senator Bill Cassidy (搜索)搜索该词条 (R-LA) has publicly accused Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. of lying to him during the confirmation process, specifically regarding commitments made about vaccine safety messaging on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website. The accusation, made during a CBS interview conducted on June 25, centers on Kennedy's handling of statements addressing the purported link between vaccines and autism (搜索)搜索该疾病.

"If you build public health upon a foundation of lies, then you're going to have the absence of adequate public health," Cassidy said. "You need to build everything in life on truth."

A Broken Agreement on Vaccine Messaging

Cassidy detailed that Kennedy had made a number of promises to him, including a pledge that the CDC would keep statements on its website noting there is no established link between vaccines and autism (搜索)搜索该疾病. In a speech on the Senate floor on February 4, 2025, Cassidy publicly outlined these commitments.

The current CDC web page now carries a heading stating "Vaccines do not cause Autism (搜索)搜索该疾病," but it appears with an asterisk and a disclaimer at the bottom of the page indicating the phrase remains on the site due to an agreement with Cassidy. Immediately below the heading, the page reads: "this webpage has been updated because the statement 'Vaccines do not cause autism' is not an evidence-based claim." The page goes on to raise questions about the statement, arguing that "there are still no studies that support the specific claim that infant vaccines DTaP查看药品详情, HepB (搜索)搜索该药品, Hib (搜索)搜索该药品, IPV查看药品详情, and PCV查看药品详情, do not cause autism."

Research has found no evidence of increased rates of autism (搜索)搜索该疾病 among those who are vaccinated compared to those who are not.

"Once you lose trust in somebody, you're not quite sure what to trust going forward. In fact, you don't trust anything," Cassidy told CBS.

The Confirmation Calculus: Guardrails Versus a Health Czar

Cassidy explained his controversial decision to vote for Kennedy's confirmation by framing it as a choice between two undesirable outcomes. He argued that Kennedy was going to have the ear of President Trump regardless, given what Cassidy described as the President's fascination with the Kennedy family.

"Either he was going to be in a position where there were guardrails, and I did have commitments made as to kind of guardrails. Or he was going to be appointed White House health czar, in which case he would have the president's ear without the guardrails," Cassidy said. "You can criticize it, but I chose to have the one with the guardrails."

Trust in Public Health Remains Unrestored

Asked whether Kennedy has restored trust in public health, as Cassidy had hoped he might, the senator was unequivocal: "He has not restored trust in public health." He pointed to reports of the Trump administration trying to rein in Kennedy and noted that the administration has shifted away from anti-vaccine messaging.

"Polling shows that the American people understand that vaccines are important, and for someone to be out there saying that they're not goes against their experience," Cassidy said. "The administration clearly has gotten off the anti-vaccine message into something more positive."

Cassidy's remarks come as his Senate career draws to a close. Last month, he lost his primary race in Louisiana to a Trump-endorsed candidate, meaning he will end his 11-year tenure in the Senate in January. Cassidy had previously voted to convict Trump in his impeachment trial following the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.